Searching for life inward the vast universe is an overwhelming task, merely scientists tin mail away cross 1 identify off their list.
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| There are colourful stars galore, merely probable no habitable planets, within the globular star cluster Omega Centauri [Credit: NASA, ESA, in addition to the Hubble SM4 ERO Team] |
Forthcoming inward The Astrophysical Journal, the report was led yesteryear Stephen Kane, an associate professor of planetary astrophysics inward UCR's Department of basis Sciences in addition to a pioneer inward the search for habitable planets exterior our solar system, known every bit exoplanets. Sarah Deveny, a graduate pupil at San Francisco State who is working amongst Kane, co-authored the paper.
In the hunt for habitable exoplanets, Omega Centauri, the largest globular cluster inward the Milky Way, seemed similar a proficient identify to look. Comprising an estimated 10 1000000 stars, the cluster is nearly 16,000 lite years from Earth, making it visible to the naked optic in addition to a relatively closed target for observations yesteryear the Hubble Space Telescope.
"Despite the large release of stars concentrated inward Omega Centauri's core, the prevalence of exoplanets remains somewhat unknown," Kane said. "However, since this type of compact star cluster exists across the universe, it is an intriguing identify to await for habitability."
Starting amongst a rainbow-colored assortment of 470,000 stars inward Omega Centauri's core, the researchers homed inward on 350,000 stars whose color—a gauge of their temperature in addition to age—means they could potentially harbor life-bearing planets.
For each star, they hence calculated the habitable zone—the orbital share some each star inward which a rocky planet could convey liquid water, which is a fundamental element for life every bit nosotros know it. Since most of the stars inward Omega Centauri's meat are cherry dwarfs, their habitable zones are much closer than the 1 surrounding our ain larger sun.
"The meat of Omega Centauri could potentially live on populated amongst a plethora of compact planetary systems that harbor habitable-zone planets closed to a host star," Kane said. "An representative of such a organisation is TRAPPIST-1, a miniature version of our ain solar organisation that is xl lite years away in addition to is currently viewed every bit 1 of the most promising places to await for alien life."
Ultimately, though, the cozy nature of stars inward Omega Centauri forced the researchers to conclude that such planetary systems, silent compact, cannot be inward the cluster's core. While our ain Sun is a comfortable 4.22 lite years from its nearest neighbor, the average distance betwixt stars inward Omega Centauri's meat is 0.16 lite years, important they would run across neighboring stars most 1 time every 1 1000000 years.
"The charge per unit of measurement at which stars gravitationally interact amongst each other would live on also high to harbor stable habitable planets," Deveny said. "Looking at clusters amongst similar or higher run across rates to Omega Centauri's could Pb to the same conclusion. So, studying globular clusters amongst lower run across rates mightiness Pb to a higher probability of finding stable habitable planets."
Author: Sarah Nightingale | Source: University of California, Riverside [August 09, 2018]
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